Webinar “Industrial Property, an accelerator of innovation and access to medicines”

The conclusion is clear: the protection of intellectual and industrial property is essential to boost innovation. So what does the Moroccan framework look like in this area, particularly in the field of health and medicines? This is the question addressed by the speakers at the latest webinar organised by the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in Morocco. Entitled “Industrial property, an accelerator of innovation and access to medicines” and moderated by Christophe De Figueiredo, President of the CCSM, the digital event welcomed three experts: Mr Mounsef El Afia, Head of the Patent Examination Department at the Moroccan Industrial and Commercial Property Office (OMPIC), Mr Abderrahim Matraoui, Head of the Narcotics Department at the Directorate of Medicines and Pharmacy of the Ministry of Health, and Mr Daoud Salmouni-Zerhouni, lawyer at the Paris Bar and IP Consultant in Casablanca.

“Morocco”, the model pupil

“The Moroccan framework for the protection of intellectual and industrial property is among the best in the world”, asserts Mr Mounsef El Afia, Head of the Patent Examination Department at OMPIC, from the outset. For such a statement, the official refers in particular to the latest score established by the American Chamber of Commerce in the 9^th edition of the International IP Index. Indeed, the Kingdom is ranked 22nd out of 53 economies with the best industrial property protection frameworks. According to this ranking, published in March 2021, Morocco has the best score in the Arab and African region. “Our country thus provides inventors and investors with a modern and compliant system conducive to innovation”, says Mr El Afia.

Morocco’s good position in the International IP Index is the result of a long journey. Indeed, the first legislation protecting intellectual property dates back to 1916, with a specific Dahir. It remained in force for almost a century, until the entry into force of Law 17-97 following Morocco’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995. This regulatory framework was modernised again in 2004 in preparation for the signing of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States. “While these two historic stages were imposed, in a way, by bilateral or multilateral regulatory obligations, the entry into force of Law 23-13 amending and supplementing Law 17-97 was the fruit of a proactive vision on the part of our country”, says the specialist. And it is precisely this new regulatory framework that gives the Moroccan system its strength: the patent application examination procedure now includes a “substantive examination procedure”. In other words, OMPIC’s engineers and doctors can now study the substance of a patent application, with the drawing up of a search report and a written opinion to assess the patentability criteria (novelty, inventive step, industrial application). The Office gives applicants the opportunity to respond, with the possibility of inviting third parties to submit observations. Morocco is also the only country in the world to recognise examinations by the European Patent Office (EPO). This advantage allows the Office, on the one hand, to concentrate on national applications and, on the other, saves European applicants from having to file a new patent application in Morocco.

In the medical and pharmaceutical field, this is also a novelty of the 2004 version of Law 17-97, given that the 1916 Dahir excluded medicines from protected innovations. The law protects not only active molecules but also therapeutic uses. “This is a global practice, the best-known example of which today is ‘molnupiravir’, patented in 2001 as a treatment for influenza and in 2020 for a new indication, that of SARS-CoV-2”, says the specialist.

Marketing authorisation, a well-honed procedure

Dr Abderrahim Matraoui, Head of the Narcotics Department at the DMP, for his part stressed the provisions of the marketing authorisation procedure that ensure data confidentiality. Indeed, while this procedure makes it possible to verify the compliance of medicines for consumer protection, it also safeguards their innovative character. “All stakeholders are subject to several pieces of legislation, including the civil service statute, the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Code of Civil Obligations, in addition to Law 17-97”, says the specialist. And that is not all. The application file is set out in a special format called CTD. It not only protects data but also facilitates exchanges between the administration and pharmaceutical companies. These exchanges are moreover governed by a precise timetable in order to guarantee rapid and efficient processing of files.

And the administration does not intend to stop there. According to Dr Matraoui, the Ministry of Health is carrying out a project to digitalise the activities of the Directorate of Medicines and Pharmacy. It will strengthen the legal and administrative protection of medicines.

Legitimacy of patents on medicines

For Mr Daoud Salmouni-Zerhouni, lawyer at the Paris Bar and IP Consultant, the protection of intellectual and industrial property, particularly in the field of health, is essential to encourage innovation and investment in research and development. “This remains true despite the controversy over the legitimacy of patent protection for medicines, which has intensified in recent years”, says the lawyer. For him, “this indictment is unfair, since the patent is a social contract that balances the interests of society and of the inventor. Finding an innovation requires investment and failed experiments. This is expensive and it is legitimate for this work to be rewarded”. However, several major media outlets and European organisations have called for the suspension of certain patents and stressed the importance of prioritising the collective interest over private interest, particularly during a pandemic. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, also joined the debate by signing an op-ed entitled “A ‘me first’ approach won’t defeat Covid”. In this op-ed, the WHO Director-General calls for a moratorium on patents for Covid-19 vaccines. To accelerate global immunity, “the normal rules of trade that protect vaccine manufacturers’ profits will have to be set aside”, he wrote.

Mr Daoud Salmouni-Zerhouni indicates that the intellectual property protection system also covers artificial intelligence technology solutions. “These are increasingly used by healthcare manufacturers because they make it possible to achieve major innovations in the creation of new treatments”.

As usual, the webinar concluded with a question-and-answer session between the members present and the invited experts. A moment of exchange that gave all participants the opportunity to enrich this webinar.